


Getting Through It

by writingtofilltime99



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, but not too much
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-21
Updated: 2020-09-21
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:02:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26587828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/writingtofilltime99/pseuds/writingtofilltime99
Summary: Percy and Annabeth are just trying to make it through their Junior year of college, towing along years of baggage, but still doing their best. When they meet by chance one night, they find themselves suddenly consumed with thoughts of each other. But nothing is ever easy in New York, and with both of them trying not to delve too far into their pasts, the path to something more might be far longer than either of them want.
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Hazel Levesque/Frank Zhang, Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Thalia Grace/Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano
Comments: 7
Kudos: 11





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello anyone who reads this! I just want to preface this story by saying it is inspired by the user waddled's story Apartment 305! some plot points like how Annabeth and Piper are roommates and how they met are directly from their story so I give full credit to them. With that being said, I hope you enjoyed this first chapter, I have a few more already written so they will be posted shortly :)

Annabeth swore loudly as the package she had lugged up seven flights of stairs slipped from her hands while she struggled to unlock the door. When she finally got the door open, she unceremoniously kicked the box through and looked up to see her roommate Piper watching her and smirking.

Annabeth couldn’t think of anything good to say so she settled with, “Oh fuck off, I just dragged your stupid drunk clothing haul all the way up here.” 

Piper did nothing more than laugh as she slid Annabeth an iced coffee from their favorite place across the counter to her before turning back to whatever she was cooking on the stove. Annabeth wandered over to the living room and flopped onto the couch, thanks to their shoebox New York apartment she could still clearly see Piper. Their cat Mango, who they had found last year when they had first moved into this apartment, jumped onto Annabeth’s stomach and promptly fell asleep. 

Piper asked Annabeth about her day and all Annabeth could do was groan. She talked about her annoying math professor and her six-hour shift from hell in which several different ancient couples yelled at her and gave her no tip, all within the first two hours. 

“Ah, the understated charm of the Corner Café,” Piper said dreamily. 

Annabeth huffed out a laugh and took a sip of coffee. The Corner Café, more fondly known as Annabeth’s Personal Hell, had been supplying her with barely livable wages for about two years. Although it was sometimes horrible, she had made good friends there and she loved routine, it just seemed silly to quit now. Annabeth complained a little more than she asked Piper about her day. 

Piper in turn gave her updates on a big group project she was working on for an advertisement class and of course gushed about Jason, her boyfriend. Piper had been dating him for a few months after half a year of shameless flirting back and forth. He was nothing like the guy Annabeth had imagined for her, but he was also somehow perfect.

Piper also mentioned that Jason had invited her to a party tonight and by the way she wiggled her eyebrows at Annabeth when she said it, she was expecting her to come with too. 

“Piper come on; this is the first Friday night I’ve had off in like a month. I kind of just wanted to eat crap and watch movies,” Annabeth said, trying her best to replicate Piper’s puppy eyes. 

“I know for a fact you have tomorrow off so we can spend the whole day together watching movies and we can even order Thai,” Piper countered, and when Annabeth couldn’t think of anything to argue, Piper pointed her spatula at her, yelled, “Ha!” and that was that. 

Annabeth let out a groan and said, “I’m allowed to leave early if I want to,” before she threw her head back over the couch. But once a plate of food was set in front of her she decided to dial back the fit she had planned to throw. 

*****

Annabeth was idly curling pieces of her hair that had gone frizzy throughout the day and trying not to overthink about tonight. It had been a while since shed gone out like this. Her last relationship had been a year of nothing but control and manipulation, so the idea of being able to go out guilt-free was hard to wrap her head around. But she shook herself out of those thoughts, her ex had taken enough of her time already, she would have fun if it killed her. She took another sip of her mixed drink, a step up from the multiple shots the two used to down in their cramped dorm room, and turned around to check out Piper’s outfit. 

All she was wearing were some boyfriend jeans and a cropped black sweater, but with her necklaces and mismatched earrings Piper looked incredible. Annabeth got up to check over her own outfit; boyfriend jeans, a cropped tshirt, and her favorite grey zip-up hoodie. The hoodie was huge, and admittedly like a security blanket she could take anywhere, but tonight she felt like she needed it. 

The girls still had time before Jason would come by to pick them up but getting ready was usually their favorite part of the night. They made more drinks and Annabeth enjoyed the buzz she felt as her and Piper danced around the living room blasting the playlist they had been carefully curating since high school. They had been best friends since they attended the same boarding school Freshman year, and although they weren’t sure of each other at first, they had quickly bonded over absent parents and shitty childhoods. There was no one else in the world she loved like Piper; and these moments, times when they could be complete idiots alone, were some of her favorites. 

They were interrupted by a knock at the door and Piper ran over to answer it while Annabeth turned the music down. Jason came inside with a few friends in tow as Annabeth downed the last of her drink and shuddered because Piper tended to be a heavy-handed bartender. Her mood improved significantly once she saw the friends Jason had brought along. 

“Hazel! Frank!” Annabeth yelled as she moved to hug them. She had met Hazel at the Corner Café and had trained her in. Haze was so sweet and shy but the more Annabeth talked to her the more she got to know the real her. The Hazel that was funny and clever, and who also cussed out rude customers under hear breath like no other. Frank was a friend of Jason’s who he had brought over to meet people since Frank was painfully shy but once Piper noticed how Hazel took an immediate liking to him she organized more group outings until Hazel finally asked him out. 

Although Annabeth was feeling better about the night, she was also concerned about being a fifth wheel, but Piper wasn’t really one to ever make her feel excluded. They made the short walk to the subway, one of the big plusses of their apartment, and settled into easy conversation. Annabeth talked to Hazel and Frank about their classes and Hazel also mentioned that she was meeting a friend at the party. From the way Frank looked less than pleased at this, Annabeth figured it was a guy. Annabeth told herself if the guy made any move remotely flirty towards Hazel, she’d step in. The party was kind of a hike and Annabeth knew she wasn’t going to leave alone even if she wanted to. Piper had probably known that, the fucker.

*****

As they approached the door to the party Annabeth could already hear the music from outside, could also feel her heart rate increasing, but she kept a calm front on as they went inside. It wasn’t a rager, thank god, but there was still a sizable amount of people. From across the room she spotted Jason’s older sister Thalia and her girlfriend Reyna, and they began to make their way over as the rest of the group bee-lined for the kitchen. 

Annabeth had known Thalia since high school, she had been the captain of the soccer team when Annabeth had joined. Although they hadn’t ended up meeting Jason until years later, Thalia had supplied them with plenty of embarrassing stories. They also hadn’t met Reyna until the year after and although she had first been intimidating in her statuesque beauty and steely demeanor, they soon loved her too. 

Once everyone said hello and Piper, who had appointed herself bartender, had handed out drinks they moved to the living room to sit and chat. Annabeth noticed Hazel shiver as she took a sip of her drink and felt bad for the poor girl, she always felt like her and Piper were corrupting her. 

People continued to enter and yell out greetings to various people but Annabeth paid them little attention, but she looked up when Hazel yelled, “Hey!” and walked over to greet two people who had just come in. She chatted with them quickly at the door then brought them over to everyone. 

“Guys these are my friends,” Hazel began, first pulling the shorter one forward and saying, “This is Leo. Leo these are my friends Jason, Piper, Thalia, Reyna and Annabeth.”

Leo grinned widely and flashed a peace sign before saying a simple ‘sup’. He was quite short, not much taller than Hazel and had a tan complexion and the craziest looking brown eyes Annabeth had ever seen. His chocolate curls were peeking out from under a lime green bucket hat and Annabeth immediately decided she liked him. 

“And this is Percy,” Hazel said brandishing the other guy to everyone. Percy nodded and said hi somewhat shyly but he probably could have screamed at the top of his lungs and Annabeth wouldn’t have even noticed because wow, she was too busy staring at him. He was also quite tan, but his hair was jet black and wild, only slightly wavy. He was tall and lean, wearing a forest green hoodie and tan Dickies. She could see two mismatched socks pulled up over his exposed ankles. His eyes were the most interesting of all, the strangest shade of green, almost churning like waves in the ocean. Annabeth tried to imagine a steel door closing on these thoughts as they were headed in a dangerous direction. But that door was blasted open and she allowed herself only a few more seconds of fantasy before shaking herself out of it and trying to rejoin this dimension. 

She focused on Frank as Leo and Percy took seats and tried not to fixate on the fact that Percy was sitting directly across from her. Frank looked only slightly uncomfortable, not out of the usual for him, but the addition of Leo seemed to irritate him. According to Leo, he was supposed to work tonight but was sent home early and caught Percy right as he was leaving since they were roommates. “Thank god I could make it though because it’s not a party until McShizzle shows up!” he finished, and everyone laughed as Percy rolled his eyes and said something about their first impression going out the window. 

Annabeth had drained her drink at an alarming rate just so she would have something to do with her hands and got up to get another. She was looking in the fridge for a Whiteclaw but came up empty so instead she grabbed a soda to make a nice weak mixed drink. She went to the freezer to get ice and heard people come into the kitchen. She realized they were speaking Spanish and cursed her brain for not being able to learn languages and turned around surprised to see it was Percy and Leo. 

“Hey, Annabeth right? How’s about making a drink for your new pal Leo?” He asked smiling at her. If it was anyone else, she might have put up a fight, but she liked her new pal Leo, so she got to work making another. She opened the fridge and figured she should offer to make Percy one too so she asked.

“Thanks, but I don’t drink,” was all he said and she was surprised by his voice. She could tell he was born and raised in New York, he had a little bit of that accent but with something else mixed in, oh my god she was obsessed.

She could also tell there was much more to his statement, but she only nodded. Percy instead found a Coke and cracked it open while Leo tested his drink yelled a, “Thanks babe!” and went back to the others. Annabeth stood there for a second then realized Percy was laughing.

“Should I be annoyed he called me babe?” She asked, but she was already smiling when she asked.

“Don’t worry he calls everyone babe, including me,” Percy assured her, “That’s just a very subdued Leo, don’t make him too many more drinks unless you want to meet the real him. I think he’s trying to impress you guys by being normal for once.” Percy spoke about Leo in a very brotherly way and Annabeth admired any displays of friendship that reminded her of her and Piper. 

“I will definitely only make him one more drink,” Annabeth laughed, “He’s like ninety pounds and he doesn’t strike me as someone that can hold their liquor.” 

Percy laughed loudly at this and already Annabeth wanted to make him laugh like that again. “So,” she started, not wanting the conversation to end, “how do you know Hazel?” 

Percy looked so happy to talk about Hazel Annabeth was scared she might actually swoon. “We met at this community center when we were younger. I used to swim there and she would always just watch me and finally after like a month I convinced her to let me teach her how to swim,” Percy smiled, “and that was the beginning of me and Hazel. A few years later I met her brother Nico, he’s my other roommate.” 

“So you guys have been friends for a long time or did you ever date..” Annabeth hoped she wasn’t being too forward but apparently Percy knew what she was hinting at because he smiled broadly. 

“Hazel is like my little sister, well another little sister,” Percy started, “Did you pick up on Frank’s vibe?” 

Annabeth had the decency to look and embarrassed and said, “Well, ya, I mean it doesn’t seem like he hates you or anything but ya, there’s a definite vibe.” Percy nodded understandingly and she wondered if he knew it was because he was, well, hot, or if it was something different. Like maybe he was used to, or expected people not to like him. Annabeth tried not to dwell on it but she loved knowing the deep things about people, and suddenly, very desperately wanted to know those things about Percy.

Eventually they joined the others and the night passed in a comfortable blur, and Thalia and Reyna left earlier since they both worked the next morning. Everyone got along well and Hazel made the suggestion as everyone was heading out that they should all hang out again soon. Since there were no objections Percy told Hazel he’d text during the week to see if they could work something out. Everyone stood outside in the cold air and said goodbye, Percy and Leo sandwiched Hazel in a hug to which Frank watched uncomfortably. After a sappy kiss-filled goodbye between Piper and Jason, her and Annabeth were on the subway home. Piper of course fell asleep on her shoulder and Annabeth let out a big breath. The night was exactly what she needed, it felt like finally coming up for air in a deep pool, she smiled tiredly and nudged Piper awake before their stop. Her head lolled but Annabeth managed to pull her up as the subway doors slid open. 

They made their way up the stairs on wobbly legs and quickly changed out into pajamas before both crashing into Annabeth’s bed. They tiredly wiped off their makeup and scratched Mango when she sprawled in between them, purring contently. 

“Soooo are we gonna talk about how you totally have the hots for Percy,” Piper said in slightly slurred speech giggling. 

“I don’t have the hots for him, I was simply acknowledging that he is hot,” Annabeth said back, her voice sounded a little garbled as well. 

“I think it’s good, it’s good to have a crush, maybe he can be a little rebound bang,” Piper said, now letting out her laugh which included a snort only when she was drunk. 

“I don’t know Piper,” Annabeth started, speaking more quietly, “it’s scary, you know? I mean he could be just like Luke.” Even saying his name left a hot and cold sensation in her chest. Piper rolled over to face her, resting a hand under her face and looking Annabeth in the eyes. 

“Annabeth, I don’t think Hazel would keep him around if he was anything like Luke,” Piper began, brushing some loose curls that had fallen out of Annabeth’s bun from her face. “Just take it slow and see what happens, I don’t want to see you hurt again, but I don’t want you to miss out on any opportunities; I just want you to have everything.” 

Annabeth leaned forward and kissed Piper’s forehead making her laugh before fully turning to face her as well. She whispered a love you and Piper answered back before quickly falling asleep. Annabeth was only awake for a few more minutes before falling into a heavy dreamless sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Percy was having a shit day. It had started when the subway was late and he was subsequently late for swim practice which his coach had made him pay for. So, then he was even more beat for his two classes, one of which was already hard enough since his professor had a monotone voice. So, then he fell asleep and would have to email the note taker for the class which made him feel embarrassed. He had been reminded of the note taker several times since his multitude of problems made school extra hard on him, but accepting he needed the extra help irritated him. Then he had to work his usual Friday shift at the campus Starbucks which was always annoying, but seemed extra long thanks to his terrible day. Add in the fact that several people yelled at him for mistakes he hadn’t even made, and it was pretty accurate to say Percy’s apartment door looked like the gates of heaven once he finally made it home.

Percy was immediately greeted by Mrs. O’Leary, his roommate Nico’s massive dog. This already improved his mood, so Percy spent about ten minutes sitting on the floor petting her. Finally he made his way to his room and when no one came in to see him he figured everyone was out. He had finally thrown himself into bed fully intending to take a nap when he got a text from Hazel reminding him of the party tonight. Percy texted back, “Can’t wait! :)” before muttering a string of swears into his pillow. He had in fact forgot about the party and really didn’t want to go but decided he’d see how he felt when he woke up from his nap. 

*****

When Percy woke up it was starting to get dark outside and he clicked his phone on to see it was around seven. He did feel better but was also starving, so he got out of bed and stretched before wandering to the kitchen, realizing he had forgotten to eat all day. When he entered he was met with Nico’s back as he rifled through the cabinet. 

“Hey,” Percy muttered making his way to the fridge. Nico jumped a foot in the air and spun around clutching a box of mac and cheese. 

“Jesus Percy you scared the shit out me,” Nico said before calming down and filling a pot with water, “I didn’t think anyone else was here.” Percy laughed and said sorry before pulling some leftover pizza out and putting it on a plate and into the microwave. He and Nico chatted about their days, Nico talking about his easy day and surprise coffee from his boyfriend Will and in turn Percy explained how horrible his own was. Nico listened attentively and only grimaced a little bit while Percy simultaneously ate five slices of pizza while talking. Nico, taking pity on him, gave him most of the mac and cheese he made.

Percy sat on the couch on his phone while Nico played a video game until around nine thirty and figured he should probably head out. Right as he stood and pulled a sweatshirt on his other roommate Leo came bursting through the door, yelled a quick, “Wait lemme change!” then ran into his room. Nico rolled his eyes and continued playing and Percy sent a text to Hazel saying, “On the way, bringing this guy Leo I found on the street” to which Hazel quickly replied, “Aww so nice to take him in :’)” followed by “See you dorks soon” Percy smiled then pocketed his phone. 

“Leo, apúrate! They’re already there!” Percy yelled just as Leo came whipping out of his room pulling his favorite lime green bucket hat over his hair. 

“Calmarse I’m ready dude,” Leo said smiling and then they were out the door. It was only about a ten-minute walk, which Leo filled talking about some engineering project he was working on with some people in his program and his good luck with getting to leave work early. Percy listened while eating a banana before throwing the peel in a garbage can they walked by. He didn’t want to explain his horrible day again so he simply said it was shit then left it at that.

When they entered the apartment the music was loud and they spotted Hazel in a group of people and she came over to chat a little before introducing them. Percy wasn’t sure he could have told you anyone’s names except Annabeth’s because he couldn’t stop looking at her the whole time. She had the prettiest blonde curls and her eyes were like nothing he’d seen before, light and grey. He looked at her sitting across from him laughing along to a story Piper was telling about their freshman year. She was illuminated from behind by the multicolored lights strung around the apartment, like something from a dream. Percy tried to reel himself in considering he had met her about five minutes ago, but he couldn’t help it, she was so beautiful it almost hurt. 

Annabeth rose and went to the kitchen, presumably to get a drink, so Percy asked Leo if he wanted to get something too. Leo gave him a weird look then smiled widely and agreed. “La amas totalmente,” Leo said to him as they walked away and he could have sworn he’d seen one of the girls sitting look towards them so he elbowed Leo in the ribcage while they walked. 

“Cállate! Crees que sabe todo,” Percy said and tried to hid the fact he was blushing. Leo noticed and laughed loudly.

“Me da igual güey,” Leo said still smiling before turning to Annabeth and asking for a drink.  
Percy could do nothing more than try not to stare at her, he tried thinking of something to say but his brain was empty. Annabeth turned to him and asked if she could make him a drink, but he declined. He swore he could see something in her eyes for a split second before she nodded and went back to making Leo’s, but he was thankful she didn’t pry. Percy had a couple reasons he didn’t drink and none of them were anything he’d like to discuss with a very pretty girl right after meeting her. 

Percy and Annabeth chatted a little more before joining the others but he would have rather stayed all night in the kitchen with her, getting to know everything about her. He couldn’t remember the last time someone had made him feel like this, so alive and interested, so excited to hear the next thing they said, hanging on every word. The rest of the night passed easily and soon they were all heading out, Hazel wanted everyone to hang out again so he told her he’d hit her up later in the week. Him and Leo hugged Hazel goodbye and Percy tried not to dwell on the annoyed look Frank gave him. It always felt like no matter what, he did something wrong and upset someone. Suddenly he panicked thinking about how he had probably said a million stupid things to make Annabeth think he was a stupid jerk. He tried to shrug it off as he and Leo walked home but suddenly the whole night felt like a bust and all he wanted to do was go to bed. Leo kept the conversation going, drunkenly rambling about something, switching between English and Spanish more than he normally did. 

When they came in Will and Nico were on the couch watching a movie and Leo went to the kitchen to make food still talking in Spanglish to Will and Nico, who both didn’t speak Spanish. But they nodded along to humor him. Percy went straight to his room, took his clothes off and went to sleep. 

*****

The next day Percy got up early to swim as always then worked a quick shift at his other job waiting tables at a Greek restaurant called Anatolio’s Kitchen. The job wasn’t too bad since Anatolio was a nice guy, but his mind was still foggy and it was just a bad day for trying to focus, so he ended with not many tips since he kept forgetting things or mixing up orders. 

Then he went to the library with Leo and tried to power through some homework but when he’d read the same paragraph five times without retaining anything, he put his head down on the table and let out a frustrated sigh. Leo patted him on the back sympathetically then offered to get him a Coke which he accepted and said thanks. He tried going through the techniques he’d learned in therapy to calm himself down. He counted his breaths and tried to ground himself and it did work a little bit, but the Coke helped a lot more. He managed to finish his assignments after four hours and he and Leo were finally free. 

They spent the rest of the day with Nico, getting high and alternating between watching movies and playing video games. He felt a lot better, and right before going to bed his mom texted him asking if he could watch his little sister tomorrow since her and Paul had somewhere to go. Percy of course accepted because he loved spending time with her, and they didn’t need him to watch her until noon, so he could still sleep in on his day off. 

Estelle was technically his half-sister, but he’d never thought of it like that. She was his mom and his stepdad Pauls’ daughter, but Paul was more like a dad to him than his real dad or first stepdad had ever been. Estelle was also one of the most important people in his life, she was only six, but she was everything to him. Percy hadn’t had the easiest childhood and he hadn’t had any siblings to share the burden with. So when his mom had told him she was pregnant, he promised himself he would make sure she grew up having everything she needed, including a big brother she could depend on no matter what. However, he was thankful she was too young to remember how he was the first few years of his life, he wasn’t that person anymore, he was who he wanted to be, the kind of guy his little sister could be proud of. In fact, he wanted to be the kind of person his parents could be proud of, especially his mom. Her life had been nothing but easy, so he had spent the last few years trying to make up for the kid he had been. He knew she loved him no matter what, but it was still hard for him to see that. 

The next day Percy slept in until ten, made a massive breakfast for himself and his roommates, then sat around until there was a knock at his door. His mom was there and Estelle ran through the door and jumped on Percy hugging him. Percy laughed and hugged her back tightly while his mom watched smiling. She said hi to Nico and Leo who were on the couch but had to leave quickly since Paul was parked somewhere he wasn’t supposed to be but gave Percy and Estelle a kiss on the cheek and told them all to behave. 

Since it was nice Fall day Percy suggested to Estelle they go to the park and color, her favorite thing to do. He would have also been happy to play basketball or something but Estelle wasn’t very sporty, she was much more thoughtful (shy) and artistic than Percy, even at such a young age. Leo asked to tag along since he had no plans and Estelle said yes since she loved him. Nico couldn’t come along since he had prior commitments, but the puppy eyes Estelle gave him almost made him change his mind. 

Percy quickly made some sandwiches and grabbed some other snacks and packed that along with some sketchbooks and colored pencils and markers into his backpack while Leo and Estelle looked for a blanket to lay on. When they were finally packed they made their way to the Subway to get to their favorite park. Percy and Leo talked slowly in Spanish with Estelle to help her learn since Sally had recently started teaching her. Percy was really glad his mom had made the decision to teach her since it was hers and Percy’s first language, it felt like another thing to bond them together. 

Estelle was learning fast and only needed a little help and told them how her teacher didn’t speak Spanish so she could say whatever she wanted to her since she didn’t understand. Leo and Percy laughed for a while about this before being mature adults and telling her that she should probably stop doing that. 

When they got to the park they found a spot partially in the shade of a tree and spread the blanket out. Estelle got to work right away drawing some flowers while Leo started drawing a dragon. Percy pulled out his phone and answered a text from Hazel about his plans today telling him where he was. Hazel quickly texted back, “No way!! I’m here too with Annabeth and Piper!! Where in the park are you guys?!?” Percy’s stomach flipped anxiously at the prospect of seeing Annabeth again and he considered telling her they had left but decided to pretend he was brave and tried to explain where they were. He told Leo about the new development and he smiled evilly. Estelle looked concerned at new people coming but Percy assured her they were nice. She didn’t look convinced and went back coloring, somewhat halfheartedly. 

Percy was about to text Hazel back saying maybe they should just hang later when Estelle wasn’t around when she heard, “Hey guys!” being yelled out to him. He looked up and saw the three girls making their way to them. Finally, they made it and spread their own blanket next to them and sat down saying hi. Estelle waved shyly at Hazel since new people were around, normally she would tackle her in a hug. Estelle was currently laying behind Percy and peeking around him to examine Annabeth and Piper, who he could tell were falling under Estelle’s charm. She was a cute kid but her and Percy looked nothing alike; she was less tanned and had lighter hair than him. She also had brown eyes like their parents, Percy always wished he could have brown eyes too. 

“Estelle, do you wanna say hi to Annabeth and Piper?” Percy asked softly shifting so she was more exposed. Estelle sat up and said hi quietly which the girls returned before going back behind Percy. The girls giggled as Percy smiled and shrugged. Hazel asked where Nico was and Percy explained he had plans with Will. 

They talked for a while and learned more about each other since Hazel was the only one who knew everyone. Percy learned they were all Juniors and went to NYU. He also learned Piper was an advertisement major and Annabeth was majoring in architecture. He told them about being on the swin team and that his major was Education with a Psychology minor. Leo talked about Engineering and the sweet robot he was building with some friends. While Leo was explaining how he had known Percy since seventh grade, Percy was distracted by a tug at his sleeve.

Estelle was looking at him and said, “Necesito ir el baño,” already standing and pulling him away. 

“Órale, vamos,” He said to Estelle before turning back to the others to say, “We’ll be right back.”  
Percy walked with Estelle holding her hand while she chattered in Spanish, occasionally correcting a word or tense. She told him about her friends and a book Sally was reading to her. It was Manolita Gafotas, a chapter book series she had read to him when he was little as well, although is was then he first encountered trouble reading, that time spent together was a memory he held close. He was glad she was getting to know that same experience. 

He stood outside the bathroom waiting since she insisted she was too old for him to come in with her, and as soon as she came out she hopped on his back and continued explaining about Lucia who was her best friend and who also had a dog named Sal. When they joined the others he was still trying to tell her that it was pointless to ask for a dog, he had gone through a similar phase in elementary school. The girls and Leo were listening to her complain and Leo tried to amend her by reminding her they had Mrs. O’leary who she could visit. 

“You know Estelle,” Piper began, “We have a cat named Mango, she’s super sweet and fluffy, maybe you could come over sometime and hang out with her, she loves meeting new people.”  
Estelle looked up from her coloring page, somewhat excitedly and gave a nod before going back to coloring. Percy nudged her and nodded to Piper and Estelle muttered a thanks and smiled at her. Piper looked very proud of herself. 

Percy was glad he packed lots of snacks so he could share with the girls, but he saved the sandwiches for him and Estelle. They all chatted and drew for the afternoon, Annabeth was also able to get on Estelle’s good side by impressing her with her sketches of buildings. Percy was also impressed which he told her, they weren’t like any buildings you’d see in New York; something about them was more creative and interesting. Annabeth looked a little embarrassed by the sibling’s praise but Percy didn’t care, he wanted her to know how talented she was. 

*****

Eventually they had to pack up and head home since in was getting close to dinner, and on the way home Sally texted Percy asking if Estelle could stay the night since her and Paul wouldn’t be home until late. Percy didn’t mind at all and informed Estelle who was very excited. They stopped at Anatolio’s for dinner since Percy got a good employee discount before heading back to the apartment. 

Will and Nico were on the couch watching a movie when they got home and Estelle immediately laid on the floor by them to cuddle Mrs. O’leary. Percy went to his room to get Estelle some pajamas he kept around and found her a toothbrush. He grabbed some sweats and a tshirt and told Estelle he was going to shower, who paid him no attention and was still with Mrs. O’leary. 

When he got out of the shower Estelle was already in her pajamas and her and Mrs. O’leary were asleep in his bed. He snapped a picture to send to his mom before turning the lights off and getting into bed too, it was a little tight with the three of them, but Percy was too happy to mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this house we stan Latino Percy Jackson! Sorry if any Spanish is wrong, I'm not totally fluent and used a translating app for some stuff! hope you enjoyed :)


End file.
